After literally years of thinking about it, I finally started my Roth IRA the other week (thus completing goal 53. Start a Roth IRA (or other investment fund)). The funny thing about this is that I'm now glad I didn't start a Roth much earlier, as I would likely have lost all the value in it.
I've got my Roth set up at Charles Schwab, where I also do my banking (recommend by a friend!). The huge benefit is that I could start a Roth with $1,000; other services required larger minimum contributions. Right now, I own pieces in two index funds: a Dow Jones Total Market fund and an S&P 500 fund.
The best part of all is the immediate growth. I know it won't always be this exciting . . . but I did make $22 in a week and a half! I still don't understand the stock market, but hopefully now those investment blogs and books will make a little more sense.
As a completely unrelated side note, I can hear the waves crashing on the shore. I love being close to an ocean again.